A special screening of Deepika Padukone's Chhapaak was hosted in Mumbai on Wednesday, which was attended by several Bollywood celebrities including Ranveer Singh, Rekha, Huma Qureshi, Bhumi Pednekar and others. Acid attack survivor Laxmi Agarwal, on whose life Chhapaak is based, also attended the film's screening in Mumbai. Deepika's father Prakash Padukone, her mother Ujjala Padukone, her sister Anisha Padukone formed her cheer squad at the film's screening. Several Bollywood stars reviewed the film on social media. Bhumi Pednekar described the film as "Deepika's best performance so far," while Huma Qureshi tweeted, "Deepika's eyes haunt me even now." Ali Fazal, Yami Gautam, Riteish Deshmukh also reviewed Deepika and Vikrant Massey's performance in the film.
Bhumi Pednekar reviewed the film in an extensive post and she described it as a "roller coaster ride of emotions." Read Bhumi's post here:
It took me a few hours to settle after watching #Chhapaak. The film leaves you completely overwhelmed. Thank you for making this.
— bhumi pednekar (@bhumipednekar) January 9, 2020
A beautiful and important story, full of courage and hope.@meghnagulzar ma'am What a hard-hitting narrative dealt with sensitivity. pic.twitter.com/ZBRfH4f52a
For Uri: The Surgical Strike actress Yami Gautam, Deepika Padukone's smile as Malti was the highlight of the film. She tweeted: "Pain is real, tears are real but so is the hope and pride !Thank you for humanising this unjust reality. Chhapaak pierces your heart. Such stories must be told and celebrated. Deepika' smile as Malti is my favourite."
Pain is real ,tears are real ,but so is the hope & pride !Thank you for Humanising this unjust reality ! Chhapaak pierces your heart !Such stories must be told & celebrated !Deepika' smile as Malti is my favourite @deepikapadukone @masseysahib @meghnagulzar @foxstarhindi
— Yami Gautam (@yamigautam) January 8, 2020
Sharing her views about the Meghna Gulzar-directed film, Huma Qureshi tweeted this:
#Chappak leaves you with anger , tears , hope and more ... @deepikapadukone your eyes haunt me even now .. This girl is Thank you @meghnagulzar for making this film. Some stories are harsh but must be told...
— Huma S Qureshi (@humasqureshi) January 9, 2020
"Verdicts out and I bow," read an excerpt from Ali Fazal's tweet:
Verdicts out and i bow. #Chhapaak's a winner because you @deepikapadukone nailed it !!! There's a side of you you've bravely revealed and hey, its honest and its beautiful. It maketh. Sending lots of love!
— Ali Fazal M / / (@alifazal9) January 9, 2020
Here are some more tweets by Bollywood actors, who reviewed Deepika Padukone's film:
More power to these 3 women. @meghnagulzar for making an amazing film on a topic that needed to be discussed. @deepikapadukone for making a brave choice as an actor and producer and acing it to the tee. #LaxmiAgarwal for sharing your story with us. You inspire me. #Chaapak
— Genelia Deshmukh (@geneliad) January 8, 2020
Just watched #Chappak a brilliant film by one of my favourite film makers @meghnagulzar - @deepikapadukone's portrayal of an acid attack survivor, her pain, her courage, her fight is pitch perfect. great debut as a producer @masseysahib is such a wonderful actor-
— Riteish Deshmukh (@Riteishd) January 8, 2020
Just walked out of the premier of #Chappak it is by far one of the most hard hitting films I have ever seen. @meghnagulzar Ji . This is a gem. FANTASTIC writing and direction. Brilliant performances by all. @masseysahib your simplicity is indeed magnetic Amol Ji
— Neil Nitin Mukesh (@NeilNMukesh) January 8, 2020
Film critic Saibal Chatterjee gave the film a 3-star-rating in his review for NDTV and wrote: "An urgent theme and a female lead who sheds her Bajirao Mastaani and "Padmaavat" finery and gets into the skin of a lower middle-class woman scarred for life by an acid attack make Chhapaak a Hindi cinema milestone."
Chhapaak is based on acid attack survivor Laxmi Agarwal's life. The film also stars Vikrant Massey. The film is slated to release on January 10, 2020. The film will clash with Ajay Devgn's period drama Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior, which also stars Kajol and Saif Ali Khan.
